Eastern Plaguelands
Scourge (32,850) Human (9,000) Forest troll (3,150) High elf |capital= Stratholme (25,000) |pop= 45,000 |major= Tyr's Hand (9,000) |level=53-60 |loc=Northeastern Lordaeron |government= Dictatorship |affiliation= Scourge |ruler=Kel'Thuzad, Lich Lord of the Plaguelands }} The Eastern Plaguelands are the most heavily devastated half of the Plaguelands, the remnants of the Kingdom of Lordaeron. They are located east of Western Plaguelands, north of the Hinterlands, and south of Ghostlands. The Scourge’s rule here is supreme. Their southern capital, Stratholme, is here, under the command of the lich Kel’Thuzad. The ground is gray and sick, the trees corrupted into giant mushrooms and the air polluted with orange mist. Undead, necromancers and Damned cultists prowl the land. A group of crazed human zealots, the Scarlet Crusade, battles fervently and vainly against the Scourge. Zul’Aman forest trolls strike from the north, attempting to reclaim their ancestral empire. The area is roamed only by mutant creatures, the soldiers of the Scourge and members of the Scarlet Crusade, who fight a constant battle to drive the Scourge out of Stratholme from their Chapel at Tyr's Hand. Only a small camp maintained by the Argent Dawn remains, a last bastion of Light in a land blanketed in darkness. With Patch 1.12, Eastern Plaguelands has had objective based world PvP added. Members of the Horde and the Alliance battle for 4 strategic ruined outposts spread throughout the land. Controlling these towers gives area wide benefits to all members of the faction, and certain towers provide other, unique advantages. Details are here. History Like the Western Plaguelands, the Eastern Plaguelands were once beautiful and brimming with farms and small villages. The regional government was centered around the city of Stratholme, the largest city in Lordaeron after the Capital City itself. Also nearby were the towns of Darrowshire, Corin's Crossing and Tyr's Hand, and to the east of Stratholme was the pass leading into the southern boundaries of Quel'Thalas. In the opening hours of the Third War, the investigations into the origins of the Scourge led Prince Arthas and Jaina Proudmoore through the Tirisfal Glades and what is now the Western Plaguelands (more specifically, the towns of Andorhal and Hearthglen), where they confronted the necromancer Kel'Thuzad and his Cult of the Damned. Kel'Thuzad told Arthas to seek out the leader of the Scourge in Lordaeron, the Dreadlord Mal'ganis, at Stratholme. While en route via Hearthglen, Arthas and Jaina were joined by Lord Uther, master of the Silver Hand. When they arrived at Stratholme, Arthas realized that the villagers had been infected with the Plague of Undeath. When Uther refused to obey Arthas' command to purge the city, Arthas relieved Uther of command and disbanded the Silver Hand, then slaughtered the townsfolk himself. After hunting down Mal'ganis in Northrend, Arthas returned as one of the Lich King's death knights and toppled the Kingdom of Lordaeron by murdering his own father, King Terenas. After the fall of Lordaeron's capital, the plague spread throughout the northern regions of Lordaeron, turning them into the blighted lands they are today. The resistance against the Scourge was particularly bloody at Darrowshire, where the ghoul Horgus the Ravager and the death knight Marduk Blackpool (alias Marduk the Black) led an army of Scourge against the town. Only surviving paladins under Davil Crokford and the Darrowshire militia under Captain Joseph Redpath were able to stand in their way. Though they put up a valiant fight, the defenders of Darrowshire were not enough to stave off the endless legions of Scourge. Davil managed to defeat Horgus in combat, but he succumbed to the horrific wounds the ghoul had inflicted. Captain Redpath fell to Marduk's necromancy, his soul taken from his body and corrupted into the service of the Scourge, where he proceeded to turn on his fellows and tear Darrowshire apart, killing everyone who hid in their homes. After the fall of Lordaeron, the Scarlet Crusade attempted to retake the shattered Kingdom of Lordaeron from both the Scourge and the undead renegades known as the Forsaken. In the Eastern Plaguelands, they took control of both the town of Tyr's Hand and the western districts of Stratholme, where they battle the forces of Baron Rivendare to gain control of the destroyed city. In recent months, the master of the Scourge in Lordaeron made his return in the blighted lands. From his citadel of Naxxramas, floating over the Plaguewood near Stratholme, he prepares to continue the work he began in the name of his master, the Lich King. To this day, only a select few know what evil plan is forming in the mind of the lich once known as Kel'Thuzad... Geography The Eastern Plaguelands contain both a normal instanced dungeon (Stratholme) and a raid dungeon (Naxxramas). The micro dungeon Tyr's Hand can also be found here. Light's Hope Chapel serves as a travel hub for both the Horde and the Alliance. There are no battlegrounds in this zone, though it is a world PvP area. Maps and subregions *Topographic map of Eastern Plaguelands Dungeons Micro dungeons *Tyr's Hand Travel hubs The only travel hub in the Eastern Plaguelands is Light's Hope Chapel, and contains a flight path for both the Alliance and the Horde. Flight paths from Light's Hope Chapel * Ironforge * Undercity * Aerie Peak, the Hinterlands * Revantusk Village, the Hinterlands * Chillwind Camp, Western Plaguelands * Tranquillien, Ghostlands (Patch 2.3) * Hatchet Hills, Ghostlands (Patch 2.3) Regions adjacent to Eastern Plaguelands Notable characters The Eastern Plaguelands are home to several characters of note. At Light's Hope Chapel, Lord Maxwell Tyrosus leads the Argent Dawn in the fight against the Scourge. At the Marris Stead, Nathanos Blightcaller sends bold heroes of the Horde against the Scarlet Crusade. And at his home by the Thondroril River, Tirion Fordring seeks to eradicate the dark horrors that the Plaguelands offer. Quests :See also: Eastern Plaguelands questing guide Resources * Herbs ** Arthas' Tears (One of the few regions where you can gather it) ** Sungrass ** Golden Sansam ** Dreamfoil ** Mountain Silversage ** Plaguebloom (One of the few regions where you can gather it) ** Black Lotus (One of the few regions where you can gather it. Rare.) * Ore ** Gold Vein ** Mithril Deposit ** Truesilver Deposit ** Small Thorium Vein ** Rich Thorium Vein Wild creatures * Abominations * Bats * Bears * Boars * Crypt Fiends * Darkhounds * Forest Trolls * Gargoyles * Ghosts * Ghouls * High Elves * Maggots * Oozes * Skeletons * Water Elementals * Zombies Notes, tips, & additional info * Near the Quel'Lithien Lodge, there is a small path that leads to Quel'Thalas — more specifically, to the Ghostlands. Guarding this path is single high elf NPC by the name of Adon, a reference to the Addon/Expansion: The Burning Crusade. The path was previously blocked by fallen trees, some of which still can be seen to the left of the current road, which goes through a mountain pass. The pass goes through an instance portal, which blocks those without the expansion from entering the blood elves' homeland. The Undead Scourge have also set up a small seige camp, Skeletal Engineers are found around here, along with many Meat Wagons. Lady Liadrin sends Blood Knights to destroy the meat wagons and the engineers as well. Category:Continent:Eastern Kingdoms Category:Zone:Eastern Plaguelands Category:Forests